Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Life is totally different.

I've lost 172 lbs. I'm 6ft 1in tall and was 367lbs. I am now 195lbs. I've posted progress pictures previously. Do you guys realize how much better life is when you're much much healthier?

Holy shit.

I remember not being able to walk up the stairs without being gassed. Feeling sooooo fat when eating just about anything. The sweating. Not being able to dress nearly as good as "fit" people just because things look terrible on you in general when you're fat. The judging eyes in public. Always wearing shorts and a t-shirt, even in the winter. Hiding from the camera. Taking shits 3 times a day. Spending so much money on fast food.

It feels so good knowing I can jog for 30 minutes straight. The looks I get in public are so much nicer. I shit 0-1 time a day. I don't sweat unless I'm in a hardcore workout or it's super hot. I spend so much less on food. I don't mind, and I quite encourage people to take photos with me. I enjoy shopping for clothes now, and even more so looking nice.

It's like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. Literally and figuratively. My life is better in basically every aspect. Why did I not lose weight sooner? I was a moron. Had I known I'd feel this good, I'd have done this ages ago. After a while, losing weight just becomes second nature. It's like I'm a master of weight loss now.

I sit down at restaurants now and the booths are giant. I flew recently and am flying out for a business trip tomorrow. What the hell? The seats aren't THAT bad. Movie seats are big, man. I was just bigger.

Motivation for everything is at an all time high. Sex is better. Life is better. People smile at me and say hi all of the time. People seem to respect my opinions more and listen to what I have to say. I check myself out in the mirror instead of shying away. I no longer hate myself.

It's crazy knowing I can sprint. I can jog. I can hike up big mountains. I can lift heavy things, and not get tired so quickly. I can relate to others who are bigger, and when people talk about them behind their back, I can stick up for them, as I know what's up. I was featured at my local gym with a plaque on the wall to inspire others. I never would have imagined this. I'm so happy I can go to my sister's wedding this August knowing I'll look solid in the wedding photos. My confidence is sky high. People call me "big guy" in reference to my muscle instead of my fat. That feels SO GOOD.

I don't know why I am even writing this post. I just felt like it. You guys - you have to experience this. Buckle down. Right now. Start today. Future you will thank you. I promise.

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I lost 165 lbs but am currently down 157lbs after a small backslide. Here's what I've learned from the past 6 months of my struggles.

Hi everyone. It's been a while since I've been here... It's been a while since we spoke.

So let's talk.

6 months ago, in October 2018, I moved out of my dingey cheap apartment and ceased my 2 hour (both ways) commute so that I could move into a beautiful apartment 3x the size and less than a mile away from my job. It was a huge life upgrade... And it was also the most stress I've had since I started losing weight in July of 2017.

Looking at MyFitnessPal, I can pick out the exact day where things started going wrong. October 23rd, 2018. Weeks of 1200-1300 calories a day, flawless eating... Then, I baked a batch of cookies. The first non-healthy baked goods I'd made since I started losing weight. The next few days looked like this:

  • October 23rd, 2018: 2,617 calories. 10 cookies.
  • October 24th, 2018: 3,046 calories. Cookies, fat bombs, and an obscene amount of protein bars.
  • October 26th, 2018: 5,420 calories. We moved. We had pizza.

On it goes. I got back on track by October 31st, but the past few months are riddled with these types of occurrances. In November, going into December, I made it back down to 166lbs. Ate well on Christmas and ballooned up to 183.6. Got back on track in January, but then started eating again after something else caused my stress levels to spike. In January and Feburary I struggled with binging and 'entry-level' purging behavior (heavy workouts after binges and/or fasting after binges), but made it back down to 166lbs. At the end of February, a family member passed away and for the first time since July 4th, 2018, on the weekend of the funeral I sincerely did not log anything I ate.

I came home and it continued. The truth is, even as I type this, I am only about 5 days out from my last set of terrible eating decisions (we went to Red Robin on Friday -- spoiler alert: I didn't get a lettuce wrapped chicken sandwich or broccoli as a side).

I spend a lot of time thinking about my future, my weight loss, and my eating habits now. I spend significantly less time talking about them than I used to and I'm starting to realize maybe that's a good thing.

You see, what we have here is an incredible community. Thousands of people who have all gone through the same journey you are partaking in or are about to take on. Advice, a place to vent, tips for getting started, a shoulder to lean on, a strong support network: /r/loseit has it all.

But what /r/loseit doesn't have is the ability to see the future. It doesn't have an understanding of the best choices to make for your specific situation. /r/loseit can't tell you how you'll deal with stress the first time something really, really goes wrong. We can't tell you that you are making mistakes when you tell us that everything is fine on the surface. There are lots of things that /r/loseit can't tell you... So here's some of the things no one could tell me that I have learned:

  1. Making good eating habits for any length of time doesn't turn you into a 100% healthy instagram blogger than never has cravings and talks about how much they looooooooooooooooooovvvvvvvveeeeeee raw vegetables with nothing else for lunch. There is a legitimate possibility that you may always look at a cake and think about eating the entire thing. You may always have cravings. You may always have an addiction... And it's important to come to terms with that, especially as someone who was formerly super morbidly obese.

  2. Giving up the things you love isn't part of making sustainable choices. When I started losing weight, I gave up baking. Last year, I remembered how much I love it. I love baking and -- yes -- I love eating the results of that. When I decided to start baking again, I knew it was going to be tough and it has been. But baking isn't what fuels my binges: even though it's easier to binge because I bake, trust me... I'll eat every package of mealprep I have if it's the only thing available.

  3. Saying no to 95% of the food offered to you isn't healthy or sustainable. Are you really planning on weighing your food at Thanksgiving for the rest of your life? Or eating broccoli three times a day on vacation every time you go? Are you truly going to be known as the person who never eats the potluck forever? It's important to value your goals, but it's also important to acknowledge that food is a huge part of our culture. People celebrate life with food, people find solace regarding death from food, people discuss business over food, people spend time with their families and friends through food. Since I stopped saying no at every single potluck and wall of samples I have had the pleasure of trying so many new things that I never would have gotten to try at home. Work functions surrounding food are a lot less stressful now as well and I am learning how to make positive decisions and still enjoy myself.

  4. Just because you are losing weight and eating above the caloric minimums doesn't mean you are making healthy choices -- mentally or nutritionally.

  5. This one is painful for me to say, but I also think it's important. Don't let your only friends be people whose only shared interests with you are weightloss. I learned in the worst possible way how important this is and I can't stress to you enough: you are so much more than your weightloss. You are a human being with your own interests, hobbies, and achievements. Weightloss is just one piece of who you are. Don't let it consume you.

This is a scary post for me to write, because it addresses some pretty awful events that I have been apart of in the past few months. However, I know it's been a while since I posted... And I feel ready. Even though it's important to take time to yourself to think about what's going on with your weightloss, it's definitely important just to talk about it as well.

Remember, /r/loseit can't see your future for you. We can't always give you the best advice for your situation... But maybe sharing the current pieces of my story can do a little bit to help someone who didn't realize they needed it.

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Bouncing back after a breakup

He was my first in literally everything- first to hold my hand, first time, etc. I was a freshman in college. Nonetheless, we were in a toxic relationship. One in which he'd slut-shame me, get extremely jealous, and make fun of my thigh size (despite me being at a completely healthy BMI for a 5'6 girl. He had even not supported me while my mother was battling cancer and I needed someone to support me. There are so many things that I could say I hated about this relationship. Yet, the worst part was when I broke up with him and was weak enough to kiss him after the break up. That day, he told me how much he loved me and wanted to be with me, but that night he went to a party and made out with another girl. The day after, he told me that no, he didn't love me. And they started dating. And I left.

It's a whole complicated mess, but this led me straight into a path of despair, loneliness, and self-deprecation. I didn't think I was good enough. After all, he'd left me for another girl right? I realized from the emptiness and ugliness that I felt that maybe he was indeed just a temporary band-aid for my low confidence. I found so much validation for myself in what he told me throughout our relationship. That I was beautiful. Lovely. Worthy.

That's why it stung so hard when he told me he felt nothing when he saw me anymore. After all, that MUST mean I was ugly (in my mind it did). I kept comparing myself to the girl he had left me for. But eventually, I learned some things. That I didn't want to "win him back", that he was even worth trying to win back. Nor did I want to "show him what he was missing". If I did that, I'd still be living under his grasp and manipulation despite being out of the relationship.

So instead, I bounced the fuck back.

I spent the rest of my freshman school year repairing myself and living in the present, not the past. Spending more time with friends, meditating, and exercising. I'm thankful for that time because I really became happy with who I was, inside and out. The validation that I seeked in him... well, I found in myself. It was hard, lots of ups and downs, several self-help books, times talking in the mirror and giving some hype talks, all of it. My grades improved significantly and even though I still sometimes mourned my past, I kept my head up. And if I didn't, I'd have my friends to help me hold my ground. For them, I am forever grateful.

Straight after finals, I flew to Guatemala for a month long internship. I could go on and on about what I learned there, but I was truly humbled during my experience there and learned how small my issues back at home were. Of course, they were still problems in the end, but the experiences there just placed things in perspective. I had reaffirmed why I wanted to pursue a career in the medical field and got back in touch with my christianity (I'm still working on that, however). When I got back home I had an oh so fabulous tan and a new drive for life.

I'd gotten double eyelid surgery (which is essentially plastic surgery. This was planned far before my breakup and is a small cosmetic procedure). I finally tried dyeing my hair PROFESSIONALLY and investing money in myself and it felt great! A good ash blonde ombre and a beautiful cut that I never thought I'd do - my thin black asian hair was NO MORE. I wanted to try to experience something GOOD! Something FUN, and it was fun just experimenting with my own looks! I even got some eyelash extensions and began improving my makeup skills. Whitened my teeth, the whole fricking shebang.

Lastly, I lost all the excess weight I gained in my first year at college. Exercising and eating just overall healthy foods had improved my mood so much. I didn't feel lethargic and this weight loss didn't even require much effort. I wasn't starving myself, but simply making lifestyle changes that I knew would benefit myself in the future. I'm 5'6.5 and I used to be around 140 pounds. After switching to eating well proportioned meals, primarily proteins and vegetables, I don't count my calories but I eat until I'm full. Before each meal I also drink a bunch of water. I'm now around 118 pounds.

Now... the big question is "why? Why did you do all of this?"

I did it to feel good and finally use up some hard-earned money as a part time student on myself. I don't think I was "ugly" before all of this, but I realized that I could only find value in myself. Other people's opinions could make or break how I'd feel on certain days, but as I spent the school year meditating upon this, I realized that people can just kindly go fuck off. So many people had shit to say about me regarding the relationship, including my ex and his new girlfriend, but I let that go. It hardened my skin and made me respect myself more somehow. I told myself that I couldn't date again, that I couldn't go into a rebound relationship to find emotional security in someone else. I had to find that security in myself.

When I walked back on campus, it felt entirely new. I spent the summer simply focusing on ME. I felt good and didn't give a FUCK if he or anyone else cared about how i looked. Why? Because I could strut myself wherever the hell I wanted knowing that I was a good person who knows how to take care of herself. I'm in my sophomore year and it's been an entirely new experience, as I'm happily single and not requiring a relationship to feel whole.

Also, if anyone was wondering, my ex-boyfriend did make some remarks about me when he saw me this year. Apparently, he's still out there calling my a slut (and his girlfriend has joined in too). She proceeded to block me on all social media and continues to try to bring me down, despite I never having even talked to her before.

Here's to all of you who are bouncing back after your breakups. No, that doesn't mean going through a wholeass appearance change like I did. I'm just proud of all of you who are fucking keeping your head up high through the whole mess. As time goes on, you WILL realize that you are worthy. You are valued. And you are goddamn beautiful just the way you are. The words of another person should not impact that. Easy to say, hard to fucking do. I know. But just some things I can finally say after all the shit I've been through I guess.

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from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2uI4eSL

Is the calorie budget MFP gave me correct?

I wanted to lose weight faster than 1.5 lbs/week, but the deficit for 2 lbs/week set my calorie budget too low for my comfort, so I settled somewhere in the middle. I've been using tdeecalculator.net and subtracting 835 from my sedentary TDEE to set my weight loss pace at 1.67 lbs/week (although I've been losing much faster than that because I'm still at a high weight and I started less than 2 months ago).

Recently I've been feeling tired and moody, and I didn't think about my diet possibly being the culprit until my mom asked if I was eating enough. I decided to try increasing my calories a bit to see if I feel any better, so I just changed my settings in MyFitnessPal to lose 1.5 lbs/week at the lowest activity level. It gave me a budget of 1840 calories. I did the math with the TDEE calculator just out of curiosity, and the number I'm getting is 1743 by subtracting 750 from my sedentary TDEE.

Like my flair says, I'm 20 years old, 5'9" tall, female, currently ~272 pounds.
Is my math wrong, or is MFP wrong? Or neither, just different algorithms (maybe MFP is accounting for some physical activity, even though I set it to “not very active”? I don’t eat back exercise calories anymore so this might be okay)? Which one should I go with?

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from loseit - Lose the Fat https://ift.tt/2FMibUY

My Fitness Journey So Far.

Hey all, new to the /r/

Thought I would post my loss journey so far, this will probably get lost/no one will care but hey ho.

February 2016 I nearly died from a blood infection (If I had gone to sleep that night rather than going to hospital I wouldn't be typing this) and in there, they weighed me, obviously, and I found out I was a whopping 103KG (I'm only 5 foot 10)

So between March 2016 - July 2017 I lost approximately 25kg going from 103kg - 78kg through a vegetarian diet, buying into various 'fat loss' supplement bullshit, exercise and lots of other stuff (and had a shit coach for 8 weeks)

July - September 2017 I enlisted the help of a decent coach as I was now skinny fat, who helped me drop another 2kg whilst I built on some muscle, got reasonably ripped but from then until the following year I sort of spun my wheels, annoyingly.

July 2018, again, prompted me to get a different coach, he had an IIFYM approach and here was where I learnt what a calorie deficit actually was! I got more ripped with him, but didn't stay with him long as it was only one of those 8 week 'challenges' (although it was very good).

I think it was at this point I realised I had a very negative relationship with food...

Come September I finally improved this, got over my fear of eating and ate... except then I overate and didn't do a bulk properly, and gained fat at a big rate (and some muscle to be fair) and went back up to 90kg.

So, January this year I started cutting again, in time for my Vegas trip and Summer, so far, I've taken an IIFYM approach again and dropped approximately 12kg so far, whilst still eating my favourite foods.

I plan to drop to about 74KG and hopefully I will have a decent level of ab's revealed and maintain that for the summer, followed by doing a (more controlled) bulk.

So, I've lost about 45KG in total, over the course of 3 years, and had a fairly strange relationship with food, my friends do see me as rather muscly but I have great a poor self view of myself at present.

On reflection of this, I thought if I was to start again, what lessons would I want myself to know?

A calorie deficit is all you need.

You can enjoy your favourite foods, drink alcohol and lose weight.

WEIGHT LOSS IS NOT LINEAR.

10k steps a day is easier than the equivalent in cardio.

Fat loss supplements are bullshit.

Water kills hunger.

You can't have a good day everyday.

It's fair to say I've been around the block a bit, If anyone has any questions about weight loss, I'd be happy to try and help.

Thanks for reading.

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Cardio vs. Strength Training: What’s Better?

If you could only choose one, should you strength train or do cardio? Trick question! You don’t have to choose, and you shouldn’t. Both types of exercise are important not just for maintaining a healthy weight, but for your overall health. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity cardio each week, plus two strength-training sessions.

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Here’s a rundown of why both strength training and cardio work benefit your health and your weight loss goals, with easy ways to fit both into your busy life.

Why you need cardio:

cardioAlmost 80 percent of Americans don’t achieve the CDC’s 150 minutes of cardiovascular exercise per week, meaning they miss out on a ton of benefits: Reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, of course, but also decreased risks for diabetes, osetoporosis and premature death.

If you vary the pace of your cardio work, it can be supercharged: Interval training, where short bursts of harder work are alternated with easier work or total rest have been found in multiple studies, according to Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, to burn more fat and increase cardiovascular function better than steady-state, medium-paced work.

Why cardio alone isn’t good enough:

Some studies seem to suggest that cardiovascular exercise, by itself, is better for weight loss than combining it with strength training. In an eight-month study of 234 overweight people conducted by Duke University Medical Center, researchers found that those who did cardio alone lost 1.76 kilograms, while those who did a combination of cardio and strength lost slightly less, 1.63 kilograms. Members of a third group, who did just strength training, actually gained about 2 pounds during the study.

strength trainingBut if you look a little deeper, the cardio-only group lost weight, but they didn’t lose lean body mass—meaning they lost muscle, not fat. The combo group gained .81 kilograms of muscle, and the strength-only group tacked on more than two pounds of muscle—meaning they lost fat overall. And a body with less fat and more muscle not only looks good, but burns more calories at rest and can help protect against disease, reduce fall risk and lower your overall risk of death.

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An easy way to do it:

Walk! You may think you have to sprint or jog to get all these benefits, but walking does a lot of good. While your watch may be telling you that 10,000 steps is somehow magical, you don’t need that many to get benefits: For every 1,000 steps you take each day, you can reduce your risk of “functional limitation” in the future due to arthritis by 16 to 18 percent (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140612085120.htm).

And walking can help keep weight off: One study conducted by Hopkins Medicine found that “moderately active” people lowered their levels of dangerous visceral fat by 7.4 percent compared with inactive subjects . And you can even get the fat-burning benefits of interval training while walking: Try changing your pace by as little as five inches per second for bursts of one minute, followed by one minute of slower walking. According to Biology Letters, when study participants did this, they burned 20 percent more calories than when they walked the same pace throughout their walk.

Why you need strength:

Having muscular strength means you can do more than just pick up a barbell. The American Heart Association recommends strength training because it improves cardiovascular function, lowers your heart disease risk, Walkingincreases resting metabolism and improves your “psychosocial well-being.” But that’s not all! Strength training improves cognitive function, according to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and even works productivity.

And, of course, it can help stave off weight gain: In a Harvard study, researchers found that men who did 20 minutes of daily weight training had less age-related belly fat gains than those who did the same amount of cardio work.

Why strength training alone isn’t enough:

It’s possible to increase your heart rate while performing strength work so that you’re “doing cardio” while lifting weights, but for many of us, it’s unlikely that we’ll elevate our heart rate enough during strength training to match the 150 cumulative weekly minutes needed to realize the cardio benefits described above. And if you do, it’s possible you’re sacrificing strength work—that is, your strength training isn’t challenging your strength enough, and has “turned into” cardio. You need both!

An easy way to do it:

People using dumbbellsIf you’re going to the gym, lift light weights. Studies have found that lifting weights to failure—continuing the movement until you can’t do another repetition—is the most important factor in building muscle strength and size, whether the load is heavy or light. One study of this kind showed that men who lifted 30 to 50 percent of their maximum weight for sets of 20 to 25 repetitions gained as much strength and size as others who lifted 75 to 80 percent of their maximum for eight repetitions per set. So if big, heavy weights make you nervous, stick to the smaller stuff. And if training to failure, be safe: Consider using a machine or a really light dumbbell so that if you truly fail, the weight isn’t putting you in danger.

No gym membership? No problem! Your body weight provides plenty of resistance. The act of getting in and out of a chair without using your hands for assistance is a strength training exercise—and it helps build muscle power, which can increase your ability to avoid a fall as you age. Try these five simple power-building exercises to start.

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OK, which should I do first?:

If you’re going to perform cardio and strength work in the same day, studies vary on which you should do first. One study published by Ace Fitness found that if you perform weight training first, your cardio workout can be harder than it would normally—resulting in an increase in pulse of 12 beats per minute compared to when the cardio’s done first. In that case, it would seem that the answer is cardio first is better.

But other studies have shown the opposite: Performing cardio first can use up the fuel you’ll need for strength training so you won’t get the same benefits. Doing weight training first can also mean you burn more fat while doing cardio, since weight training can use up the carbohydrates in your body in advance of your aerobic work.

So the real answer is: It depends on your goals, and more importantly, your preferences. If you find you prefer cardio work first and it’s the only way you have enough energy to also do your strength work—stick with that. If when you do strength traninig first, you feel like you have more zip to finish your aerobic session, do that. If all things are equal and weight loss is your goal, do your strength work first.

The post Cardio vs. Strength Training: What’s Better? appeared first on The Leaf.



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13 Healthy Snacks to Beat the Afternoon Slump (Flex-Style!)